THE PORT AUTHORITY OF NY & NJ

Press Release Article

PORT AUTHORITY ACHIEVES $100 MILLION IN ANNUAL AGENCY SAVINGS

Date: Nov 17, 2005Press Release Number: 138-2005

New Operational Efficiencies Include 10 Percent Reduction of Non-Security Jobs

The first phase of an internal review of Port Authority business practices has yielded $100 million in annual cost savings for the agency. These savings will help the bistate agency offset skyrocketing security costs and help fund its aggressive plans to upgrade the region’s transportation infrastructure.

Over the past 1_ years, the Port Authority conducted extensive reviews of its operations and developed new strategies to make the agency more efficient and effective.

Strategies taken by the agency to reduce costs include:

Elimination of 545 positions without impacting security or customer service.

Consolidation of operations at two interrelated Port Authority facilities – the Lincoln Tunnel and the Port Authority Bus Terminal – which previously were managed as separate facilities. The consolidation allows improved coordination of tunnel and bus terminal operations while eliminating redundant administrative and supervisory positions.

Better coordination and deployment of maintenance staff for seasonal and short-term assignments.

Centralization of the Port Authority’s marketing, advertising and communications functions within one department to create a single point of contact for customer information.

The ongoing review allows the Port Authority – which receives no tax revenues from either state – to maximize efficiencies. The agency’s security costs have risen 167 percent since 2000 to a record $625 million proposed budget for 2006.

Port Authority Chairman Anthony R. Coscia said, “As we work to implement our 10-year strategic plan, we must ensure the agency is operating as efficiently and sensibly as possible. Our staff has identified strategies to improve our business, which will allow us to deliver an ambitious Capital Plan while operating within our fiscal means. This is an essential effort if we are to remain a strong and vital contributor to our region’s future.”

Port Authority Vice Chairman Charles A. Gargano said, “Since 9/11, we have faced challenges that were never contemplated in this agency’s history. Specifically, our security costs have risen to record levels, and we need to find ways to address those increases while continuing to provide critical transportation services to the millions of people who live in, work in or visit the region. Our staff has worked hard to find ways to meet these challenges into the future.”

Port Authority Executive Director Kenneth J. Ringler Jr. said, “If the agency is to remain an important force in the region’s economic future, we must manage our business as wisely as possible. We want to be good stewards of the public’s money by providing top quality service as cost efficiently as possible.”

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey operates many of the busiest and most important transportation links in the region. They include John F. Kennedy International, Newark Liberty International, LaGuardia and Teterboro airports; AirTrain JFK and AirTrain Newark; the George Washington Bridge and Bus Station; the Lincoln and Holland tunnels; the three bridges between Staten Island and New Jersey; the PATH (Port Authority Trans-Hudson) rapid-transit system; the Port Authority-Downtown Manhattan Heliport; Port Newark; the Elizabeth-Port Authority Marine Terminal; the Howland Hook Marine Terminal on Staten Island; the Brooklyn Piers/Red Hook Container Terminal; and the Port Authority Bus Terminal in midtown Manhattan. The agency also owns the 16-acre World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan.

The Port Authority is financially self-supporting and receives no tax revenue from either state.